In current optical network, laser target tracking, and free space optical communication have been developed as separate optical systems. Because of the size, weight and power constraints, it makes sense to combine functionality of these systems. The development of such common pointing and tracking systems, common laser optics, transmit and receive subsystems, and adaptive optics will dramatically reduce the size, weight and power and maintain individual technical functionality.
Although conceptual designs of the multi-beam, multi-aperture system have many potential configurations, the challenge is to design a system for combining these distinct, but related functions. This invention relates to developing the multi-beam payload that can show individual beam steering, multiple beam transmission through multiple apertures.
Current beam steering products and/or technologies steer single laser beam. A gimbal beam steering device (BSD) represents the most matured technology1. However, it is slow, inaccurate, bulky, heavy, power hungry, and inherently lack of capability of steering multi-beams. Optical-Acoustic2,3,4 BSD is another developed technology. But it is power hungry and has limited beam aperture size and beam programmability. State-of-the-art BSD technologies includes liquid crystal optical phased array (LCOPA)1,2, ferroelectric liquid crystal (FLC) spatial light modulation (SLM)3, liquid crystal blazed grating4, liquid crystal retarder or birefringent BSD5, multiplexed liquid crystal BSD6, and Microelectomechanical system (MEMs)7,8,9. MEMs technology relies on mechanical tilt or swing of micro-mirrors and is intrinsically a mechanical steering device. Liquid crystal based BSDs are stationary and are more sophisticated. Ferroelectric liquid crystals (FLC) is fast, on the order of microseconds. However, in order to have a continuous phase shift capability, a multiple layer structure of n binary devices each having a thickness 2π/n must be adopted.